From the Porch Swing

While this edition is packed with Steel Magnolias, I know there are so many more of you out there reading this magazine. You go through life, dealing with challenges big and small. And you do it with grace and dignity and faith. So I celebrate you all, each and every one! Read more

About Magnolia

Magnolia is a magazine about the women of Northwest Georgia. In each issue, we spotlight several amazing women, and our regular features examine motherhood, life after 50, health, business and more.

Perfect Home

From the Porch Swing: Steel Magnolias

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Steel Magnolias bloom in abundance in the South, and we decided to celebrate some of our local ones this season. The namesake movie and play certainly strike a chord with us Southern gals. The story chronicles the trials and tribulations of a group of friends, through life’s ups and downs. Continue Reading…

The Clotheshorse: Dressing Steel Magnolias for 30 years

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Photograph by Judith Jackson

All her life, Evelyn Sims has had a love for beautiful garments. She was an accomplished seamstress, and she says “that background was the foundation for knowing a well-made garment.” And that’s something that has served her as owner of The Clotheshorse on Rome’s Broad Street for nearly three decades. Continue Reading…

Having a baby in the Information Age can mean advice overload

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Photographs by John Bailey

When you don’t know much about a subject, you take a class right? We followed the path of Bill Cosby in his famous comedy routine about parenting. When we learned of the imminent birth of our son Alexander, my wife Sally and I, both college-educated people, began looking for places we could learn about the most natural process on Earth. Continue Reading…

Magnolias of the Past: Imogene Coulter and Aunt Martha Freeman

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Photographs by Lindy Dugger Cordell

Rome’s history has included women who have helped shaped the course of our community and touched the lives of people here. Each fall, Heritage Holidays events include tours of historic Myrtle Hill Cemetery that include portrayals of former Romans by current citizens. This year, once again, Angela Hoskins and Lisa Smith portrayed two notable women — Aunt Martha Freeman and Imogene Coulter. Continue Reading…

This is not your mama’s Junior Service League

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Pictured are Tashia Twyman (front left), Ashley Ellington, Margaret Beacham (back left), Carolyn Brearly, Julie Lucas and Nan Marie Cash. Photograph by Ryan Smith

They’re bold. They’re sassy. They’re Blackberry-carrying, e-mailing, carpooling, Internet-savvy, marathon-running, multitasking, educated, incredibly busy women. They are the Junior Service Leaguers of the 21st century. And while their lives may be more mobile, more frenetic and more high-tech than their counterparts of the 1930s, their core mission of service to their community has not changed a bit. Continue Reading…